Centerpoint Helps Save 19 Lives Through Organ Donation

Through the generosity of donors, donor families and the diligent work of the Centerpoint Medical Center medical staff, 19 lives were saved with the gift of organ donation between October 2011 and October 2012. Organ donations include heart, kidney, pancreas and liver transplants. In addition, 32 donors enhanced the lives of 1600 people who received tissue transplants, while 47 donors gave the gift of sight to 94 people in need of a corneal transplant.

In recognition for its efforts, Centerpoint was awarded the Department of Health and Human Service’s Silver Medal of Honor for Organ Donation, for achieving and sustaining national goals for donation, including a donation rate of 75 percent or more of eligible donors at their facilities. Centerpoint was one of 18 Kansas and Missouri hospitals recognized for its success in increasing the number of organs available for transplantation.

April is National Donate Life Month. To celebrate and honor Centerpoint’s donors and donor families, a Family Circle Celebration was held on April 10, 2013. The ceremony honored organ and tissue donors and their gift of life. Earlier this year, the Medical Staff at Centerpoint Medical Center placed a rose on the Donate Life Float for the 2013 Rose Parade in memory of Centerpoint’s organ donors. The float was featured during the 124th Rose Parade on January 1, 2013. During the Family Circle Celebration held at Centerpoint, each family member was given a replica of the rose vial placed on the Donate Life Rose Parade Float.

Currently, nearly 120,000 men, women and children are awaiting organ transplants in the United States. The need for organs and tissue is vastly greater than the number available for transplantation. Transplantation gives hope to thousands of people with organ failure and provides many others with active and renewed lives. For more information on how to become a registered organ or tissue donor visit the Midwest Transplant Network’s website at www.mwtn.org.